Papaver Somniferum & The Chamber of Wonders Exhibit

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The original Papaver Somniferum painting will be on display from December 14th- January 2nd in the Enlightenment Cabinet: Chamber of Wonders group show, curated by Yvette Endrijautzki, at Krab Jab Studio in Seattle. The exhibit features an eclectic array of international artists.

The Wunderkammer (chamber of wonders) arose during the Renaissance in Europe as universal and encyclopedic collections that would capture all of the lore and knowledge of an epoch. Also known by various names such as Cabinet of Wonders, Kunstkammer, or Curiosity Cabinets, they also formed collections that were precursors to museums.

Portraying a memory theater and microcosm of the world, including odd objects belonging to natural history, archaeology, religious relics, curio paintings, science and antiquities.... 

The opening reception is Saturday, December 14th, from 6:00 PM. - 9:00 PM.
Krab Jab Studio. 5628 Airport Way S. Ste 246, Georgetown, Seattle. WA.  98108.
Event is concurrent with the Georgetown Art Attack.

Drawing from a rich legacy of botanical illustration, Papaver Somniferum evokes the Geist of the infamous opium poppy in meticulously rendered splendor. This image of the Red King originally appeared in the now renown Infernal Proteus musical herbal compilation, published by :AJNA: in 2002. The book features artworks by Madeline von Foerster, Markus Wolff and others, embellishing a presentation 90 pages long with 4 CDs containing over 40 different musical artists. The book has long since sold out. 

In addition to Papaver Somniferum, a small egg tempera and oil painting titled, 'Corvidae Skull' will also be exhibited at Krab Jab Studio, within the Quoth the Raven group show. On display from January 11th through January 30th. Both works are offered for sale. Interested collectors please contact Krab Jab Studio directly.

Vierling works at Three Hands Gallery

The esoteric publishing house, Three Hands Press, has announced the launch of their web Gallery. Several original Vierling artworks, including the painting, Night's Passage, are available for sale. Interested collectors please contact Three Hands Press directly.

A few copies of the limited edition Sacred Heart Lithograph are also still available, and can be ordered via the Three Hands website. 

Fyrnask art nominated for best album cover of 2013

The artwork for Fyrnask's "Eldir Nótt" has been nominated for the Best Art Vinyl 2013 prize in the United Kingdom. Announced via news outlets such as the BBC, METRO, and Design Week.

From the Design Week article:

 "Having released some of 2013’s biggest-selling records, Paul McCartney, Elton John and Daft Punk are now among artists in the running for the Best Art Vinyl 2013 prize.
Now in its ninth year, Art Vinyl puts record sleeve designs to a public vote in an effort to find the year’s best cover.
A 50-strong shortlist has been drawn up, with big-name pop stars alongside lesser-known groups such as FYRNASK,  Ras G and Pissed Jeans. Designers on the shortlist include Big Active, Leif Podhajsky and YES.
Art Vinyl founder Andrew Heeps suggests that the award is ‘possibly the most credible end-of-year award, where the artistic merits of the completely unknown can sit alongside big names in music – albeit in celebration of their visual identity’."

The complete roster of selected albums, which includes an album cover by renown UK artist, Damien Hirst, can be seen on the Metro website, and on the Design Week website. The Vierling Fyrnask cover is #22 in the list.

Voting on the best album cover is open to the general public, and can be done directly at the Art Vinyl website. 

 

Mandragora officinarum & CLAVIS

The second issue of the Clavis Journal features the painting, Mandragora officarum, as a companion illustration for an article about the infamous Mandrake plant. Also included in this issue is the painting, The Path, alongside artworks by other notable peers and colleagues including Madeline von Foerster, Hagen von Tulien, and Timo Ketola.

The second issue of the journal will be officially released Saturday, the 16th of November, at the Anna Miliksetian | MJBrigss Gallery in Los Angeles. Two Vierling paintings will be on display at the event. Interested collectors please contact the Clavis Journal for more information.

From the Clavis Website:

Clavis Journal is a book-quality occult periodical published every nine months by Clavis Editions, a collaborative endeavor between Three Hands Press and Ouroboros Press. At over 200 pages, its second volume contains 17 essays by some of the most cogent esoteric authors of our time, including Henrik Bogdan, Gordan Djurdjevic, Andrew D. Chumbley, and Gemma Gary. Volume 2 builds upon the tradition established in our maiden volume: ”A Journal of Occult Arts, Letters, and Experience“.

To mark its release, an official launch party will be held on Saturday the 16th of November in Los Angeles, California from 7:00-10:00 PM at Anna Meliksetian | MJBriggs Gallery. Our guest speaker will be Gordan Djurdjevic, who will give a brief talk on the Thelemic goddess Babalon, the subject of his essay in CLAVIS 2.

The event will also feature the exhibited artworks Tom Allen, Billy Davis, Caroline Hamilton-Giles, Carlos Melgoza and Benjamin Vierling whose work appears along with other artists in Volume 2. Several of the artists will be in attendance, and refreshments will be served.

Ouroboros Press and Three Hands Press titles will be on hand for sale, as will be selections of original art from our artists. Announcements on future works from the publishers will also be made.

To order a copy of the journal, please visit the Clavis website. 

Autumnal Aural Collaborations.

The advent of Autumn has seen the unveiling of numerous pairings between image and sound. Paramount amongst them are two illustration projects with renown poster artist and longtime colleague, David D'Andrea. The cooperative process has facilitated the creation of several uniquely graphic images, the first being a panoramic display for the German band, Fyrnask. The artwork appears in the layout of Eldir Nótt release, available through ToT Records in Sweden.

Another Vierling & D'Andrea collaboration has manifested in the form of a 3 color silk-screened tour poster for several international Heavy Metal bands. The poster was printed at Broken Press in Seattle. Soon to be available for online purchase.

Pandora on exhibit in Berlin

Pandora, an egg tempera & oil painting, will be on exhibit at the Strychnin Gallery in Berlin as part of the 'All My Stars' 10 year anniversary show. Also being displayed is the 'Boxed Vanitas', alongside works by other notable artists, including: David Hochbaum, Marina Bychkova, David Stoupakis, Wee Flowers, Seymour, Kris Kuksi, Mark Ryden, Saturno Butto, Mimi S, Chet Zar, and many others.

As the Gallery comments, "For this extraordinary milestone birthday exhibition, “All My Stars”, opening the 16th of August at Strychnin Berlin we will show not only show brand-new works, but will also feature Yasha Young’s personal collection and the gallery’s inventory. Thus, making it a walk through our past, and an insight into our future."

Both Vierling paintings are for sale. Interested collectors may contact the Strychnin Gallery directly.

Pandora. Egg Tempera & Oil on panel. 18" x 24"

The subject of Pandora takes it's cue from Greek mythology, alluding to 'She who brings up gifts from below'. The theme has been portrayed in paint countless times throughout history, from antiquity to the present, being expressed with particular empathy by various 19th century pre-Raphaelites. Vierling's interpretation depicts the moment after curiosity has piqued, the amorphous shades already saturating the atmosphere. 

Boxed Vanitas. Egg Tempera & Oil on panel. 6.5" x 6.5"

The composition of the 'Boxed Vanitas' exalts the trompe l'oeil tradition and was painted from life in the artist's studio. The walnut frame punctuates the illusion, encouraging the viewer to peer into the compartmentalized space, and to ruminate on the delicacy of the mundane.

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Beautifully Strange Exhibition ~ The Firebird

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Zhar-ptitsa - The Firebird

18" x  24"  Egg tempera & oil on panel

 Slavic folklore tells of a magical Firebird that inspires the seeker to embark on a challenging quest wrought with adversity, yet guided by fortune. In these beguiling tales, the mythical creature often leaves behind a singular luminous feather that catalyzites the fateful adventure. King, Fool, Knave, and Warrior all heed the call to meet their destiny on the path illuminated by the evanescent gleam of the Firebird's passing.

The painting takes it's stylistic cue from the bold iconography of russian lacquered artifacts which are traditionally decorated with scenes from myth and legend. The brilliant palette and kinetic forms, set like gems into the glittering ebony field, are here depicted in the manner of nineteenth century ornithological illustrations, wherein the delicate structures of feather and talon are rendered with naturalistic precision.

This union of the fantastic with the mundane kindles a yearning to embark on the hunt for all that is rare and elusive. The search for the unattainable is realized in the vision of the effulgent Zhar-ptitsa.

The Firebird painting will be on display March 29 – April 24, 2013, at the Clement Art Gallery in Troy, New York, as part of the Beautifully Strange show curated by Jon Christopher Gernon. The show features 12 acclaimed artists, including Carrie Ann Baade, Steven Kenny, Caitlin Hackett, and others, whose work is described as, 'exquisite, peculiar, astounding, dazzling, fascinating, mystifying, curious, delicate, magnificent, fantastic, alluring, unusual, enticing and Beautifully Strange.'

 The Window

12" x 12"  Egg tempera & oil on Panel

Also included in the show will be the painting, The Window, whose subject echoes the Aves theme.  The intimate symbolism of the composition is rooted firmly in the romantic-era tradition of the 'Window View', as perfected by painters such as Caspar David Friedrich, Adolph Menzel, and Vilhelm Hammershøi.

Both paintings are offered for sale. 

The show opens Friday, March 29, 6-9pm. Clament Gallery.  201 Broadway Troy, New York 12180 (518)272-6811

For purchase inquiries and more information about the exhibition, please visit the Clament Gallery Website, and the Beautifully Strange Blog.

Die Chymische Hockzeit & CLAVIS

Die Chymische Hochzeit, an illuminated Vierling illustration dating from the first year of the 21st Century, appears in the premier issue of the CLAVIS Journal, co-published by Ouroboros Press and Three Hands Press.
  
"Born of the desire to serve an increasingly sophisticated esoteric community, the journal's pages wed the dual arenas of scholar and practitioner, our aim to serve as a magical resource for years to come. In accord with the Emblem of our work, the journal provides unique access to magical strata and currents of esoteric thought not found elsewhere. Our pages feature Magical Theory and Practice, Hermetic Studies, Comparative and Esoteric Religion, History of Magic, Folklore and newly-emergent fields of syncretic occult praxis."

The Vierling illustration, which depicts the sacred union of male and female principles and is inspired by the theme as explored by Johannes Valentinus Andreä, accompanies an article on the Philosophical Mercury, by the renowned 15th century alchemist, Sir George Ripley.

The Journal will be launched at an event in Seattle, at the Hiawatha Lofts, on March 26th, 7-10 PM. The original Die Chymsiche Hochzeit artwork will be on display. Interested collectors please contact William Kiesel at Ouroboros Press.